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Extracts of Letters from Mr. H. MEREDITH to the SECRETARY, dated at Cape Coast Castle, in August 1808, and January 1809.

"FOR upwards of a century the Gold Coast of Africa has been known only for its chief production of Commerce, Gold, Ivory, and Slaves. Those who resorted hither allowed themselves no time for inquiry into the nature of the country, and the state of its inhabitants.

"Respecting the agricultural and commercial capacities of the African Continent, I may venture to affirm, that this part of Africa is rich in productions natural to countries under the same latitude, and abounds in others that are not to be found in the same luxuriance in either continent. The profits that arise from the Slave Trade excluded many of the natives from applying themselves to manual labour. Corn, yams, and other necessaries, were purchased; and cultivation on the sea-coast was consequently neglected.. Now that the Abolition has deprived them of those resources, the necessity of being more industrious is clearly indicated: every person appears to have arisen from a state of ease and indolence, and to turn his attention to propagating the fruits of the earth.

"The Commerce of this part of Africa, until better means of improvement and cultivation are adopted, must be confined to only a few articles: Gold, Ivory, Palm Oil, Pepper, Bees' Wax, Honey, and Gums. Coffee, Cotton, Indigo, Sugar, Flour, and various other articles, may be added to the list of African produce. In a word, Africa is capable of wonderful improvement, both in a commercial and agricultural way, if proper means are resorted to.

"The intellectual condition of the African is not to be despised, In whatever way he may be considered in the

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West Indies, or in other countries, here we have an opportunity of viewing him in his genuine state. I have had occasion to admire, and every day I behold among them, men of great strength of mind and admirably quick perception. In a general sense, the intellectual powers of the African is as rich as the soil, and, with the same attention, could be made as fertile." Some, who have received a narrow education in England, have shewn proofs of a quick and extensive genius, and, with few exceptions, have become an ornament to society. Among our neighbours, the Dutch and Danes, we behold persons, educated by means of schools established in the country, who give proof of strong intellec. tual powers.

"When I view the moral state of the African, a number of deformities are seen, which every day may now tend to correct." "It is well known, that here the dearest objects of regard have often fallen victims to the fury of irreligion, and the allurements held out by a traffic, the loss of which the African, I firmly believe, has no cause to lament. The same disposition remains among them, and would be clearly manifested to-morrow, if other powers renewed the Slave Trade. I will therefore beg leave to say, that this would be a most fit season to introduce means of civilization and culture." "For the moral condition of the African could be reformed with less difficulty now than in a time of peace."

"Our forts in this part of Africa embrace a line of coast extending from Apollonia to Whydah, a distance of about 350 miles by land. The natives of both these kingdoms are under a despotic government, particularly the latter."— "But the people with whose condition I am best acquainted are the Fantees, and other states that adopt similar laws and customs. They possess an extent of coast from Dick's Cove to Accra, and are under a government compounded of strange materials."-" Before the late visit from the king of Asiantee, the administration of public affairs was regulated and decided by three classes of men,-Braffaes, Pynins, and Fetishmen. The Braffaes were a body (for very few of them are now in being-the Asiantees nearly extirpated the

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whole) that made and distributed laws with an absolute authority. When a Braffae walked abroad, he carried with him fear and terror. Although he could not command the life of a Fantee-and in this he only differed from the most despotic power-yet his property was at his mercy: whatever necessaries he stood in need of must be supplied by an individual or the public. From the decision of a Braffae there was no appeal, neither did it admit of the interposition of any of the other branches; but it was only the richer part of the state that could call in the aid of a court of Braffaes: they required to be well fed, and better paid; and woe unto the party that did not act in a liberal and even profuse manner! They generally lost their cause, and half of the award was left for their judges.

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In every respectable town there are men established for the administration of justice, or, more properly, for executing and promulgating the laws, called Pynins, which, in a literal sense, means the elders of the people. These men are chosen by the majority of the public. Sometimes they succeed by hereditary right: in this case, if any deficiency is perceived in their legal knowledge, their authority is suspended, and others appointed by the public voice. A court of Pynins may be justly called a court of equity; and is the only one wherein a Fantee may expect a clear examination into his case, and an impartial distribution of justice."-"Their laws are particularly severe, as they have a general tendency to slavery. Murder is the only crime that does not meet with its merited punishment. Trivial offences are delayed, by which means they accumulate into what are considered serious crimes, and punished accordingly. If a person, for instance, through accident or design, was to kill a hen, no immediate notice probably would be taken of it, unless the person committing the offence should sue the party injured with presents; in which case forgive. ness is granted. But if this is neglected, not only the person, but a part of his family, are liable to become Slaves, or pay a handsome sum for their redemption. For the action is of this kind; the said hen would have been prolific,

and her offspring would have likewise produced numbers, whereby the wealth of the owner would have been increased; and a sum adequate to this increase must be paid before a restitution is acknowledged.

"There is no part of the Fantee government where imbecility is more clearly seen, than in the abominable prac. tice of Panyaring, which is an indulgence granted to seize any person or persons for the crimes of another; principally that of debt. By this distressing system, whole families, nay villages, have been sold and rendered desolate. When the Slave Trade was in being, this horrid practice was carried on with great fury, and it is continued to this day. If the offender is given up, panyaring ceases."

"The Fetishmen are a set of men full of cunning and deceit, and considered along the Coast with an awful reverence, as the ministers of their deities; and, where monarchy does not exist, their power is great. They industriously scatter abroad the seed of superstition, to the end that they may be considered with admiration, and consulted on every occasion of public or domestic calamity. The word Fetish signifies, in its literal sense, a supernatural power: it is also used in this country as the name of their deities or demons, whether ideal or corporeal. Their charms, or amulets, bear the same signification. In short, whatever is considered by them to possess the power of good or evil, is denominated Fetish. According to Dalzel, the tiger is worshipped at Dahomy; the snake at Whydah: the alligator and hyena are the Fetishes of some parts of the Coast. Different families have sometimes different Fetishes. A piece of carved wood besmeared with the yolk of an egg or palmoil, is held in as much veneration as the image of the holy Virgin in some countries of Europe. Sentences of the Alcoran, carefully incased, are with some held in high estimation; while others prefer the horn of a goat, or the tooth of a tiger. When we consider the distress which superstition and its concomitants occasion in this wretched country, our interest and pity are strongly excited. Where no absolute government exists, Fetish is consulted on almost every

occasion: their deity is easily bribed; and the man of indigent circumstances is sure to be the sufferer. For in general their deity is avaricious; and whoever is most profuse in gifts and sacrifices, is sure to be held in favour with his god; but it is the Fetishmen who take the whole, and enrich themselves at the expense of their credulous neighbours. If implicit obedience is not paid them, they have recourse to horrid expedients; and should forgiveness be implored, the avenging Fetish expects a handsome present before he is reconciled."

The writer then proceeds to notice, at some length, the means which he would recommend for improving the condition of Africa. Among these he specifies schools, which should convey a knowledge of the elementary branches of learning; as reading, writing, and accounts; and should combine with this, instruction in agriculture and other useful arts. He likewise recommends the introduction of European implements of husbandry, in place of the hoe and bill.

"I am pretty well convinced," he adds, that "little can be accomplished without the benefit of schools, which must be on an extensive plan."

"The children of the most distinguished and respectable families are to be chosen for instruction, in preference to those of less note: as by their influence and authority, when they come of age, the designs of the Institution would be materially extended. The kings of Apollonia, Dahomy, and Asiantee, would willingly send one or two of their children; and the Caboccers, and different persons of respectability, would follow the same plan. Indeed, every person of consequence would cheerfully submit to having his child separated from him, for the purpose of receiving knowledge that would put him on a footing with a White."

"The forts upon this coast are governed by English, Dutch, and Danes; and, from the general state of affairs, it may be supposed, that two powers out of the three are in a forlorn condition; but by a rigid economy, and good organization, their establishments are supported with a re

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